Charlotte Illes Is Not A Detective by Katie Siegel

Charlotte Illes Is Not A Detective by Katie Siegel

I started this book thinking it was by Katey Sagal for some reason?! It's not, but I still enjoyed it.

I was hooked with the initial premise of a child detective grown up. I loved Encyclopedia Brown and other detectives and spies when I was younger, so I thought this would give the same satisfaction.

While I did finish the book - and feel compelled to finish it based on the story - I don't think the case was enough to carry this long of a novel. Though I also thought the book was too long - lots of filler conversations between the friends and brother that felt either pointless or like an info dump. So maybe a shorter book to solve this case, or a different/more cases for a book this length? The second book is already in the works so it'll be interesting to see how that one is. Honestly, if the case as it was first presented (with the notes) carried throughout the book, I think it would have been a lot better. I understand why that clue was handled as it was, but think the author could have easily done something else to still make that same point.

I don't watch the author's TikToks so I'm not sure how this character comes off on screen, but I thought she was pretty believable on the page. Overall, I liked the book enough to see what happens next, thanks to a nice (yet low stakes) cliffhanger.

Brutally Honest by Melanie Brown

 HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEL B! Now let's talk about your book.

I recently got on a Spice Girls kick after listening to their albums, remembering how amazing they were, and realizing I’ve never read any of their memoirs! Mel B had me tearing up from the first page with her honesty about her marriage, insecurities, and struggle to overcome everything. She said it was hard to act like an empowered woman with this happening behind the scenes but I think sharing it now makes her more empowered and relatable than ever before.

It jumps around a lot and in some places is difficult to follow the thread. I kept having to google some of her relationships to grasp the timeline and files the stories from the book into the right place. However, she's open about ADHD and Paris Hilton was the same in her memoir, so I can appreciate the authenticity of feeling like you're getting inside the people's minds.

Selfishly, I wanted a lot more information about the Spice Girls days, but this is Mel B's book and it focuses more on her personal life and relationships, especially her abusive marriage. I just need to get my hands on Catch a Fire from 2003 which apparently covers her early fame.

Still, this was a compelling read and I can't wait to find her earlier book, along with others by Spice Girls.